Golden Spoons Review: Cayman Cabana

(CNS Foodie): My partner and I decided that a relaxed evening by the water was in order but we didn’t want the bother of a formal restaurant meal so we headed for Cayman Cabana, which seemed to offer what we were after. But I should say that to ensure the relaxed atmosphere we went midweek, as I understand Fridays and Saturdays may be a bit hectic in the bar area.

We managed to get a spot in its very small car park and made our way past the large square bar with seats all around and the bartenders in the middle. This particular evening there were no patrons so it was very quiet. We were shown the seating area and left to choose our table since there was only one other group eating. We happily sat down by the water.

Despite the lack of diners, it did seem to take some time for our waitress to arrive with menus but luckily we were not in any hurry. The menu was straightforward and it did not take long for us to make our decisions. We started with conch spring rolls ($11) and spice soca shrimp ($12), For our mains, I chose the market catch of the day, which was snapper that I chose to have grilled Cayman style served, and was served with caramelised plantain and salad ($22). My partner opted for the pulled jerk pork sandwich served with fries and salad ($14). For drinks, my partner ordered a Cayman sunset ($8) and I had a Malbec ($6). The cocktail was one of the better “sunsets” we’ve had – good fruitiness to complement the rum and the wine was quite light and fruity for a Malbec, and very easy to drink.

The appetisers arrived and were very tasty. My partner’s shrimp was particularly good – spicy, but not too hot, and with the shrimp well cooked and juicy. The spring rolls would have benefited from a bit more filling and less pastry, which I would have preferred to be flakier. Overall, if not wonderful, the dish was at least OK.

Our main courses arrived eventually (service was very slow given that, as mentioned, the restaurant was quiet on the night). The snapper was absolutely wonderful – fresh and tender and tasty and I would have been happy to have just had the fish on its own. The salad was good and fresh too, possibly a little clumsy to eat with large quarters of tomatoes and chunks of cucumber but this was not fine dining. The plantain was indeed caramelised and quite sweet which I’m not sure added anything to the dish as a whole but were very nice on their own.

My partner’s jerk pork was a little bit dry and very spicy hot; she was unable to finish the whole sandwich even though she usually quite likes the heat. The fries were good and crispy, though, and the salad the same as mine.

We thought it only fair that we should report on the complete package so ordered a dessert. There were only three choices so although we did think about trying all of them we managed to restrict ourselves to two – the pineapple cake and the Key lime pie. Sadly, they were both a bit disappointing – although the pineapple cake was moist and sweet, neither myself nor my partner could detect any pineapple and the Key lime pie was overly sweet with only a very slight hint of lime. We only managed a bite of each, but our waitress noticed and did not charge for the pie.

Overall, though, we got the relaxed meal by the water that we were looking for. It wasn’t horribly expensive, the fish was wonderful and the other food was good to OK. I would definitely eat here again but perhaps not order the full three courses next time; just the catch of the day would suit me fine.

The total bill was $92 with 15% gratuity included.

Cayman Cabana website

Tags: Cayman Cabana, George Town, Waterfront dining

Category: Dinner, Golden Spoons Review